Tomorrow's Boat Owners

Tomorrow’s boat owners Findings from landmark research on first-time boat buyers 1 Introduction The future of our industry depends on our ability In 2000, first-time boat to bring more people into boating and reduce the attrition rate of current boat owners. Today, our buyers represented 42% of primary driver of growth is people who are in the all boat buyers. In 2015, they market to purchase their second, third, or even their fourth boat. This group of people is highly represented only 33% of all passionate and committed to boating, and they’ll boat buyers. That equates to keep coming back with little effort on the part of the boating industry. an overall decline of 37%. But repeat buyers were once first-time boat buyers. And we’ve discovered a particularly disturbing trend among first-time boat buyers—there are fewer and fewer of them. Boats Sold To First-Time Buyers Pre-Owned % of All Boat Year New Boats Total Boats Buyers 2000 175,000 458,000 633,000 42% 2005 149,000 415,000 564,000 40% 2010 55,000 364,000 419,000 37% 2015 69,000 328,000 397,000 33% Source: Info-Link Technologies, Inc. 2016 Introduction 2 Our industry is at a crossroads. We can choose the are, how they live their lives, what motivates them easy path: continue to hope that repeat buyers to own a boat, and ultimately, how they want to go will come to us. Or we can choose the road that about buying one. We’ll also share which barriers they secures our future: We can invest in the first-time encounter along the way, as well as what we all can boat buyer. do to help them more easily—and quickly—become first-time boat owners. We all support growth for the marine industry. But after the release of this data, we understand there’s a more important imperative, and by For a webinar that presents a working together, we can help reverse this trend. summary of this data, along with Over the summer of 2016 and with the support short video vignettes of our first-time boat buyer segments, please visit: of our stakeholders, Discover Boating set out https://www.growboating.org/first-time- to learn all we could about the first-time boat boat-buyer-research.aspx buyer and understand how we, as an industry, can bring them into boating. From the moment they start dreaming about ownership to actually experiencing ownership, we wanted to know it all. What we found is that we, the boating industry as a whole, often gets in our own way. The appetite for the first-time boat purchase is there, and it’s perhaps stronger and more widespread than ever before. But converting these dreamers into owners will require us, as an industry, to put ourselves in their shoes. We need to adapt to the way people want to shop and purchase boats—not how we want them to do so. And the responsibility doesn’t fall on just one group. Discover Boating, boat brands and dealers must work together if we’re to be successful. The following report outlines the results and implications of this landmark research initiative on first-time boat buyers. We’ll share who they Introduction 3 About Discover Boating The purpose of Discover Boating is to introduce new people to boating and to advance their exploration of ownership. We’re the industry’s national boating awareness campaign developed by the North American recreational boating industry to help get people on the water. Discover Boating programs focus on the boating experience and building interest in recreational boating by providing a resource for Americans to explore the benefits, accessibility and fun of the boating lifestyle. To find out more, visit DiscoverBoating.com. About Grow Boating The purpose of Grow Boating is to identify growth opportunities within the marine industry, and champion those opportunities through consumer communications, targeted programs, and by developing industry education and resources. The Discover Boating program is one of several of Grow Boating’s areas of focus. To find out more, visit GrowBoating.org. Introduction 4 Key Findings Overall, this is the most comprehensive research From beginning to end, they move through five to date on the first-time boat buyer. Our goal with important stages. And these stages are highly this work was to understand the first-time boat emotional, filled with excitement but also buyer, identify how they move from “boating” to anxiety and disappointment. “owning,” and understand how we, as an industry, can support them. • Participation is the single greatest trigger of the first-time boat buyer’s desire to own. • The boating industry is at a crossroads. On the Nearly all can point to a specific trip when they surface, we’ve recovered from the recession. decided they wanted to own. It’s crucial that But every year, fewer people enter boating the industry supports participation efforts, for the first time and make it through the because it truly is the gateway to wanting to buying process. In fact, 400,000 fewer people own a boat. entered the boating category for the first time between 2010 and 2015 than from 2005 to • Once they decide to own a boat, they don’t 2010. This offsets the gain we made in owner immediately start shopping. In fact, they start retention: 300,000 fewer people exited the dreaming. How will they use the boat? Where category between 2010 and 2015 than 2005 will they go? Who will they go with? What will to 2010. life on the water look like for them? And the more detail they add to this dream, the more • There are six different kinds of first-time boat ready they become to actually start shopping. buyers. They all have different motivations for getting out on the water. Some seek • Getting advice from other people—either escape from stressful lives. Others like to friends, marina staff or dealers—is crucial to show off to their friends and family. Boating their purchase process, according to recent, is a longstanding family tradition for one first-time owners. But we found the majority group, whereas another is just beginning their of first-time boat buyers do not have people in own tradition. While one group simply enjoys their lives that they trust to give them advice tagging along on boating adventures, another on buying and owning a boat. group loves engines, horsepower and speed. The journey to ownership for the first-time • The way people shop has changed. Traditional boat buyer is different than for someone who leads will soon be extinct. In our study, two- is looking to buy their second or third boat. thirds of first-time boat buyers said they’d Introduction 5 only give out personal information at the erodes the trust they have with the dealer, but point of purchase. That means you won’t also makes them question boat ownership get any traditional leads for two-thirds of altogether. Dealers have an opportunity to first-time buyers. But that doesn’t mean they increase buyers’ trust and close more deals aren’t there: They are shopping and collecting by educating them about the ins and outs of information on what dealers have to offer—but owning a boat earlier in the sales process and they’re doing it on their own terms, not yours. by offering purchase options that make boat ownership easy. • The boating industry has an opportunity to better meet first-time boat shoppers’ unique needs when it comes to purchasing. Today, many expect upon entering a dealership that they need to prepare for battle, arming themselves with information or even friends who are boat experts. And unfortunately, these expectations are sometimes fulfilled. In fact, 66% of people who stopped shopping for their first boat said they did not have a helpful experience at the dealership. This is where retail salespeople have an opportunity to set themselves apart and ultimately turn around these perceptions. By understanding the first- time boat buyer’s needs and better meeting them, they can convert a higher percentage of these buyers and make the purchase experience a pleasant one, thus increasing customer loyalty. • First-time buyers are prepared to take on the investment of buying a boat. But it’s what they see as “hidden” costs that can derail their purchase. They often don’t learn about expenses like registration fees and maintenance costs until the last minute. This Introduction 6 Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: 08 Key terminology CHAPTER 2: 10 The research approach CHAPTER 3: 13 The six different types of first-time boat buyers • Gear Guys • Merry Mates • Luxurious Leaders • Water Weekenders • Seclusion Seekers • Nautical Natives CHAPTER 4: 34 The first-time boat buyer’s journey to boat ownership • Develop • Desire • Dream • Decide • Do CHAPTER 5: 63 Conclusion Introduction 7 Chapter 1: Key terminology 8 There are a few terms you’ll see frequently throughout this report. Here’s the definition of each. First-time boat buyer (also referred to These are people who are interested in buying as first-time buyers): their first boat (new or used), but haven’t yet. This includes people who haven’t started shopping yet, as well as people who are actively shopping in a dealer. Recent, first-time boat owner (also These are people who purchased their first referred to as “recent owner”): boat (new or used) within the last two years. Lapsed, first-time boat shopper (also These are first-time boat buyers who were referred to as “lapsed shopper”): seriously shopping for their first boat (new or used), but stopped just short of purchasing.

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